1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to apparatus for applying chemicals; and, more particularly, to an applicator for applying agriculturally oriented chemicals to soil, crops, and the like where an irrigation system is employed. Specifically, this invention relates to an applicator for applying fungicides, fertilizers, and the like via sprinklers on an irrigation system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art has seen a wide variety of application devices, or applicators, for applying chemicals for a wide variety of purposes. Even in the field of agriculture where chemicals are to be applied to soil, crops, and the like, there have been a wide variety of applicators depending upon the nature of the chemicals. For example, tractor mounted containers with conduit leading to plows and the like have been employed for applying certain chemicals such as anhydrous ammonia and liquid suspensions of relatively insoluble chemicals. Other forms have seen aerial spray devices employed, as from tractors, low flying planes, helicopters and the like. There have even been chemical proportioners for admixing chemicals into the irrigation lines so that the chemicals are sprayed with the water onto the crops and earth. Such proportioning feeders have been very expensive and have been difficultly employable where slurries, suspensions and the like of relatively insoluble chemicals were employed. In apparatus that employed agitation means, specially coated moving parts, and the like, the cost became exhorbitant and prohibitive for the average farmer who has had to watch his profit very carefully with the ever increasing costs without concomitant increase in his crop prices.
One of the problems that has plagued attemtps to provide distribution, or application, of the chemicals via an irrigation system has been the erratic application. Ordinarily, the chemicals would be dispensed in the first few sprinkler heads unless a proportioning feeder was employed. Thus, no inexpensive method of applying chemicals via a sprinkler system has been provided.